Jason Archer: Coming Home is Free
An interview with Wichita Falls' standout country singer/songwriter about his new EP
Jason Archer is well-known in Texoma and beyond for his straightforward brand of Americana Country music. TheFUSE first heard Jason at Thanksgiving of 2023 when he performed a live show at Collective Coffee, where he and fellow Wichita Falls singer/songwriter Jay Burnam kept us entertained while the coffee kept us warm.
Recently we heard Jason Archer had released a new EP, Coming Home is Free [Spotify | Apple], and we dropped into Jason’s DMs to ask a few questions about his new collection of heartfelt and profound songs.
Is that your wife I hear singing on the tracks with you?
Yes! Rachel sings harmony on every track except on Josephine - which is sung by my dear friend, Sarah Schneider. Rachel is the best singer in our family and my constant encourager and my biggest fan.
I assume you performed the harmonica parts?
Yes I play harmonica on the songs. I’m still a beginner on the ole harp… but I’m learning. My good pal, Brendan Bell, played banjo on Sound of a Heartbreak. He’s one of the best musicians (and most talented) I know. Marc Bindel plays the keys on several of the songs, as well. Marc (who’s the head football coach for Memorial High School) just started learning piano this year and is one of my best friends. I play guitar on every song.
Who recorded and/or engineered?
All the songs were recorded by me at my house (except Coming Home is Free - which I recorded out in the country in a friends backyard - I just needed a change of scenery and wanted the outdoor sound). Some friends very generously bought me some good mics and equipment. I also did my best to mix the songs (which is why they may not sound as polished as they could). My friend, Darion Ryan Roberts, helped mix and master some of my previous music and has been very helpful. But I wanted to save some money with these and give it a shot myself. What learned from this is that I don’t like the technical part of mixing and engineering… haha. I’d rather just write and play.
Are these new songs? Or have you been playing them for awhile?
These songs were all written in the past year and a half. Some of them I’ve played live this year and some I’ve never played (yet). The last song (and my personal favorite) is the newest. I wrote it about 2 months ago.
Any insight on the songwriting process you'd like to share? Where did the inspiration for these songs come from?
This is a great question and the thing I like to talk about most. I started writing during Covid. I had space in my head and took a deep dive into the craft. I’ve found it to be therapeutic and very rewarding. I’m writing constantly. Usually a couple times a week I will sit down and write. Sometimes a song comes out of it, sometimes part of a song, sometimes nothing. Most of these songs came from personal experiences. Several of the songs revolve around theme of “Home”… leaving home, coming home, how you view your home, etc... It’s a very powerful metaphor for me and where I’m at in life currently. Josephine is the only song I wrote without a guitar in my hand. I wrote in while I was in Africa last summer with my family. It’s about missing home and the feeling of really wanting to be back. Nowhere Town is about my beloved Wichita Falls. Coming Home is Free is deeply personal to me… and I can’t even really explain why. It’s kind of a Texas Prodigal Son story.
Check out Jason Archer’s “Coming Home is Free” on your favorite streaming platform [Spotify | Apple], and follow him on Facebook.
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